Mayo Clinic’s Nurse Anesthesia Program Admissions Requirements
Minimum GPA
If an applicant wants to strengthen their GPA or selected science GPA, they can do so by taking graduate level science based courses (A&P, math, pharmacology, biology, statistics, etc.). These credits will not be accepted as transfer credits, but they do help strengthen your GPA. This nurse anesthesia program really likes applicants who take these extra courses, especially if they receive an “A” in the course(s). The Mayo Clinic College of Medicine’s Nurse Anesthetist program does require a minimum 3.0 overall GPA and prefer their applicants to have a minimum of a 3.2 for both their science and overall GPAs. Over the last few years applicants to this nurse anesthesia program have had an average overall GPAs of 3.65 and mean science GPA of 3.55. This is a pretty competitive GPA average.
Prefer CCRN
This nurse anesthetist program strongly encourages it’s applicants to obtain their CCRN. It is not required for admission, but it will strengthen your application.
Number of Years Experience
This CRNA program hasn’t historically interviewed applicants with less than 1.5 years of ICU experience. More than 2 years of recent critical care experience as a Registered Nurse is recommended. Over the past several years the average number of years of ICU experience for accepted students is greater than 4 years.
Best ICU Experience For CRNA School Applicants
The Mayo Clinic College of Medicine’s Nurse Anesthetist DNAP program looks for applicants who have the following experience in ICU:
Airway management: mechanical ventilation, extubation criteria, ventilator modes, monitoring, and trouble shooting.
Invasive Lines: arterial lines, central venous pressure monitoring, PA catheters line management, data interpretation, and complications.
Titration of vasoactive drugs: proficient at managing epinephrine, phenylephrine, dopamine, cardene, dobutamine, amiodarone, levophed, nipride, nitroglycerine, etc. Applicants must be able to make decisions regarding these medications, titration, complications, and correcting complications. You should have a in-depth knowledge of the pharmacology and physiology associated with each drug.
EKG analysis: rhythm interpretation, treatment based on interpretations, and myocardial infarction identification.
Working in a high acuity ICU will give you good experience and helps fine tune the skills that are required for all top nurse anesthesia programs. PICUs and NICUs can provide similar experience, however the school encourages you to gain some experience in an adult ICU. This is needed to strengthen your application to their CRNA school. The school no longer accepts PACU or ER as acute care experience. They don’t feel like the experience gained in those acute care settings provides the clinical background that they want their applicants to have. The admission committee prefers that all applicants work in a critical care at least two years prior to starting the anesthesia program. In addition, they want your last ICU experience be within the past 3-4 years.
Nurse Anesthesia Program FAQ
Will being a Mayo employee help gain me admission into CRNA school?
Mayo employees are more familiar with the Mayo system, so this knowledge can give them an edge when interviewing. However it is important to know that preferential treatment is not automatically given to Mayo employees. In the situation where two applicants have very similar applications, and one is a Mayo employee, the school might be more likely to choose the applicant with the Mayo experience.
How many people apply to the Nurse Anesthetist program?
The school averages 100 – 120 applicants each year. Every year they interview 55-60 Registered Nurses and accepted 24 – 26 students for each class. 2013 was the last year they were accepting students into their Masters of Science Nurse Anesthesia.
CRNA School admission reference letters?
The Mayo Clinic College of Medicine’s Nurse Anesthetist program requires that applicants provide narrative references. Do not use the electronically generated reference forms that are located in the generic electronic application process. Make sure you read the directions specific to the nurse anesthesia reference letter guidelines. It is always a good idea to start early when requesting your references.
CRNA School applicant’s GRE scores?
This Nurse Anesthesia program does not have a cut off score for the GRE, but they do take these scores into consideration. Here are GRE “Ballpark” Scores that the school would like you to have, but are NOT required: 153 – Verbal/144-Quantitative/3.5 (29)- Analytical. If you are worried about your scores, when comparing them to the “Ballpark” numbers listed above, the school recommends you contact them before you retake the GRE. This will allow them to put your scores into context with your GPAs and work history.
Tips For Interviewing For CRNA School
The Nurse Anesthetist program recommends that you keep a journal of situations or experiences that you have been involved in that might help you answer any questions related to crisis management, stress, coping skills, etc. They don’t allow you to take the journal into the interviews, however it is a great practice tool to review before your interview day.
For more information or tips on getting into Nurse Anesthesia School please take a look at our program called CRNA School Admissions: The Cold Hard Facts. It covers everything you need to know about applying to all the top Nurse Anesthesia Programs.
For more information or tips on getting into Nurse Anesthesia School please take a look at our program called CRNA School Admissions: The Cold Hard Facts. It covers everything you need to know about applying to all the top Nurse Anesthesia Programs.
John Keith | CRNA Career Pro
Chief CRNA
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